Category: CityGirlTravels

We leave for three weeks in the UK on Sunday and I am determined NOTto overpack or feel overwhelmed by the overall packing process. As much as I’ve travelled, I still don’t have it down to a science. So I consulted with Nikki Tilley, co-owner of the Tilley Vancouver travel shop (1750 W Broadway, Vancouver), for some packing tips. (There’s also a contest at the bottom of this post! *Contest Closed*)

We leave for the UK in less than a month, and I officially have Christmas and travel on the brain. Aside from some travel toiletries, I’m all set with what I need for the our trip. (I’m also done my Christmas shopping – woot!) But Black Friday and Cyber Monday have got me thinking about what I or any of my travel friends would feel fortunate to see under the tree or in our stockings. So here’s a little gift guide – clicking on any of the images will bring you to their respective shops.

Continuing with our #friendsinbeerplaces road trip along the Coastal Ale Trail… When I travel, I’m all about convenience, efficiency, and quality. No set order. All three things come in handy when exploring, but sometimes you need to go the extra mile (or ferry) in order to find quality. The road less travelled, if you will. And that is why the Brit and I are big fans of Love Shack Libations and Townsite Brewing – they are craft breweries that go the extra mile for their customers, which makes going off the beaten path completely worth it.

If you don’t know the TV show whose theme song title I’ve shamelessly used in my post title, you probably weren’t born when it was on the air. Google it. Watch it. It’s fabulous. And the theme song is classic.

But to get to my point, the song represents the sense of community that I feel craft breweries and their tasting rooms have brought a back into our social culture. (Even with social media taking over our lives!) It’s something we especially felt when we were on our recent road trip along Vancouver Island’s portion of the Circle Route on the BC Ale Trail. More on that in a second.

The last few years have been full of road trips. I think I’ve been on seven in the last two years – including last year’s Highlands trip with the girls, and the recent trip the Brit and I took along BC’s Coastal Circle Route to meet some #friendsinbeerplaces. (More on that soon!) Because of this, I’ve got my road trip essentials down pat.

Instagram has become more than a fun place to share photos. It has become a community. I know that social media has its downsides, but a fun part for me is connecting with people via the app and then having the opportunity to meet them in person. The Blog Pod girls are an example of this and so is the lovely Gill Murray, a Scottish food photographer and blogger that I met a few years ago when she liked one of my Scotland photos. We’ve kept in touch and I was so happy to meet her in person last year when I was back in Edinburgh. She is a gorgeous human being inside and out.

Travelling is wonderful. But if you get sick in any way while there or right after you get back, not so fun. Some of this can be attributed to jet lag and recycled air on the plane. But over the years I’ve realized that the biggest reason much of the above happens is that while we are doing ourselves a favour by taking a break to go away (for however long), we tend to stop mindfully looking after ourselves when we travel.

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